The present invention, within the obstetrics sector, is an foetal acoustic or sound-based stimulation device of a type comprising a means of emitting acoustic stimulation signals in order that one or more foetuses may be stimulated by, for example, music, voices, vibration and other pre-recorded sounds emitted by a speaker.
The field of application of the present invention falls within the industry sector dedicated to the manufacture of devices intended to achieve foetal or prenatal stimulation.
In medicine, particularly in obstetrics and neurology, it has been scientifically proven that foetal or prenatal stimulation is of great importance to the infant's life. In fact, it is known that the foetus responds to external stimuli while in utero, with its response becoming greater as it develops. Various methods of foetal stimulation exist, one of which is sound-based or auditory stimulation of the foetus (or foetuses).
The results of recent investigations indicate that foetuses and even embryos (Cf. Poster-127: “Impact of exposure to music during in vitro culture on embryo Development” from Human Reproduction, Oxford University Press, accessed via http://humrep.oxfordjournals.org/ 7 Nov. 2013; authors: C. Castello M. Asensio, P. Fernandez, A. Farreras, S. Rovira, J. M. Capdevila, E. Velilla, M. Lopez-Teijon, of the Instituto Marques, Reproductive Biology, Barcelona, Spain), respond to aural stimulation and that the effects of the same may constitute a premature learning experience and have an impact on the behaviour and learning ability of the child after birth.
In the state of the art, experiments and devices with vibroacoustic elements and speakers placed against the abdominal wall are known, as evidenced in patents U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,934,998, 5,699,558, 6,097,822, 6,718,044, JPH11205878A and patent applications US2011015471A1 and US2011245737A1, which describe prenatal audio devices and articles of clothing intended to acoustically stimulate the foetus.
The systems known in the state of the art, including those mentioned above, include elements applied to the exterior of the user's skin, against the external part of abdomen, and may have the disadvantage the their effectiveness could be limited by the presence of a tissue barrier between the point at which the sound or acoustic stimulation signal is emitted and the foetus' ear.
The present invention aims to offer a solution to the aforementioned disadvantage.